The Netherlands: The Geert Wilders Show Trial Continues

The emails indicate that Prime Minister Mark Rutte himself was involved in the decision to prosecute Wilders.

"Minister Van der Steur has deliberately withheld those documents, as is apparent from these documents. Moreover, it appears that another Justice Minister, Minister Opstelten, lied..." — Geert Wilders, February 5, 2020

"Mr. Presiding Judge, the Minister of Justice interfered in detail with my conviction. The documents even state that the Ministry of Justice instructed the public prosecutor — you will find the word 'instruct' in the documents...." -- Geert Wilders, February 5, 2020

"And every day that this trial continues and you do not punish the conspiring prosecution, and the Ministry of Justice for their lies and haggling with the principles of an independent, fair and balanced trial, by declaring them inadmissible, every day this trial continues is a black day in the history of Dutch justice." — Geert Wilders, February 5, 2020

"In the Wilders case, we certainly do not have to rely on the judge to agree with Wilders and to reach the conclusion that there has been a political trial, which is therefore not legally valid.... Wilders case appears to have been pre-cooked in the cabinet itself.... [Prime Minister] Rutte himself was involved.... The lying and spinning must stop somewhere.... This rule of law, in which judges and prosecutors receive instructions by the politicians on how to act, is rotten from within." – Joost Niemöller, Dutch Journalist, Ongehoordnederland.nl, February 5, 2020

Newly released documents show that senior members of the Dutch government — including the former prime minister and justice minister — applied political pressure on public prosecutors to indict Geert Wilders, leader of the Party for Freedom for "hate speech." Pictured: Wilders (left) sits next to current Prime Minister Mark Rutte at a meeting of political party leaders at the Dutch House of Representatives on March 16, 2017 in The Hague. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)

Newly released documents show that senior members of the Dutch government — including the prime minister and two former justice ministers — applied political pressure on public prosecutors to indict Geert Wilders, leader of the Party for Freedom (Partij voor de Vrijheid, PVV), for hate speech for comments he made about Islam and Moroccan immigrants.

The documents, which the government turned over to the Amsterdam-based newspaper De Volkskrant in compliance with a Freedom of Information request, appear to confirm long-standing allegations by Wilders that the government's decade-long legal war against him is far from a principled pursuit of justice, and instead politically motivated and aimed at silencing his criticism of multiculturalism and mass migration from the Muslim world.

On February 3, De Volkskrantreported that the government documents — numbering nearly 500 pages — show that as early as 2008, then-Justice Minister Ernst Hirsch Ballin was "intensively involved" in the decision to prosecute Wilders.

According to De Volkskrant, the Public Prosecution Service (Openbaar Ministerie, OM) found nothing illegal about Wilders statements, but Hirsch Ballin pressed the OM on three separate occasions to change its assessment.

In June 2008, the OM dismissed more than 40 criminal complaints against Wilders on the grounds that his statements were made "in the context of political debate" and therefore "not of a punishable nature."

In January 2009, the Amsterdam Appeals Court, the second-highest legal authority in the Netherlands, overturned the OM's decision and ruled that Wilders could be tried for inciting hatred. Wilders said that it was a "black day for myself and for freedom of speech."

The first trial against Wilders began on October 4, 2010. He was accused of insulting religious and ethnic groups and inciting hatred and discrimination for describing Islam as fascist and comparing the Koran to Adolf Hitler's book Mein Kampf. Wilders argued that his statements were directed at Islam as an ideology and not at individual Muslim believers.

The trial collapsed on October 22, 2010, after it emerged that Tom Schalken, one of the judges in the case, had tried to sway a potential witness.

The retrial began on February 6, 2011 with three new judges. Wilders said that his trial was about preserving freedom of expression in the West.

On June 23, 2011, Wilders was acquitted of all charges. Judge Marcel van Oosten ruled that the statements by Wilders, while "gross and denigrating," did not meet the standard of hate speech and as such were "acceptable within the context of public debate."

Despite the acquittal, the government's harassment of Wilders continued. Internal government emails recently published by RTL Nieuwsshow that Hirsch Ballin's successor, Justice Minister Ivo Opstelten, repeatedly pressured the OM to bring a new case against Wilders. Opstelten, his aides and the prosecutor repeatedly consulted with each other before the decision to prosecute Wilders a second time was made in the fall of 2014. The OM has always denied that it was subject to outside political interference; the emails show that the OM denials were untruthful. An email sent by the lead prosecutor, Wouter Bos, on October 8, 2014, warned: "This must not leak!"

Other government emails show that the decision to bring a new case against Wilders was discussed as early as March 2014 in the Council of Ministers, the executive council of Dutch government, formed by all the ministers, including the prime minister. The emails indicate that Prime Minister Mark Rutte himself was involved in the decision to prosecute Wilders.

On March 18, 2016, Wilders went on trial again for allegedly inciting hatred against Moroccan immigrants. Prosecutors said that in March 2014, Wilders, while campaigning in The Hague, asked a crowd of supporters if they wanted more or fewer Moroccans in the Netherlands. The crowd said fewer. Wilders responded: "We'll take care of that."

Prosecution spokeswoman Ilse de Heer said that Wilders "targeted a specific race, which is considered a crime." Wilders countered that his comments referred to Moroccan criminals, not to Moroccans in general, and that, in any event, Moroccans are not a race.

On December 9, 2016, Wilders was found guilty of inciting discrimination. The court, however, imposed no form of punishment; it said that the verdict was a sufficient penalty. The Public Prosecutor demanded a fine of €5,000 ($5,500). Both Wilders and the Prosecutor appealed.

Since then, Wilders has been entangled in a protracted legal process that shows no signs of ending anytime soon. In an appeal hearing on February 5, 2020, Wilders voiced his anger over the political nature of the case against him:

"Presiding Judge, members of the court: The shamelessness of the Public Prosecution Office knows no boundaries. In a report we received yesterday and heard about today, they claim — one-and-a-half days after they received the documents from the Ministry of Justice — that nothing is wrong, that nothing has been found that indicates political influence.

"Rarely have I seen attorney generals who are so damaging to the rule of law, who don't care about a fair trial. They are blinded by their hatred for me and the PVV. These kinds of people, like those two attorney generals, ensure that the trust of ordinary people, the common man and woman in the Netherlands, in the public prosecutor and the judiciary has fallen to a low point.

"The Public Prosecutor says that there is nothing wrong. Shame on you, attorney generals. What we all know now is enough to immediately end this political process, this charade....

"We already knew, Mr. Presiding Judge and members of the court, that officials from the Ministry of Justice, under the responsibility of former Justice Minister Ivo Opstelten, had adjusted press releases from the public prosecutor. That it was Minister Opstelten himself who wanted two press releases. That his officials had made a legal analysis of this case. And shared this with the public prosecutor.

"We already knew that they had helped the public prosecutor refute the defenses of the defense. That, for example, the phrase, 'we will arrange that' was brought to the attention of the public prosecutor by the Ministry of Justice. That they wanted to see the requisites in advance to provide comments.

"And now there are 475 pieces again. And indeed, we have not been able to read all of them, I mean, we could hardly read any of the pieces. But if I only look at what the media writes about it, such as Volkskrant or RTL journalist Pieter Klein, then only more shocking things have come to the surface.

"It even appears now that it [the case] has been discussed in the Council of Ministers, Mr. Presiding Judge. In the Council of Ministers. How much more political does it get?

"The documents show that a senior official of the Ministry of General Affairs of Prime Minister Rutte informed a senior official of Ministry of Justice of Minister Opstelten that the Prime Minister expects the Minister of Justice to be able to say something meaningful during the Council of Ministers of March 21, 2014 about whether the prosecution of Wilders is promising.

"How promising it is! Promising: according to the dictionary, I looked it up, that also means likely, successful. It has a positive connotation. The Council of Ministers, Mr. Presiding Judge. This concerns an opposition leader in the House of Representatives. That is shameful, but that is, unfortunately, not unique, because we also know from the documents that we received yesterday that it was — in relation to the Wilders 1 trial, but I still want to have mentioned it, to indicate what they are capable of — that it was then Justice Minister Hirsch Ballin who requested legal advice three times because he did not like the earlier advice that it was impossible to prosecute Wilders. He repeated his requests for advice until he received the advice he wanted.

"Back to this trial. Apart from the fact that it was discussed in the Council of Ministers — words cannot express, it does not become much more political and corrupt — former [Justice] Minister Van der Steur, the documents show, deliberately and personally stopped the publication, on the basis of the Dutch Freedom of Information Act (WOB), of an official message about my persecution. Minister Van der Steur stopped that.

"According to the documents, the decision on the WOB request was delayed until after the decision of the Court of First Instance. Until after my conviction. Imagine that. Mafia practices. Pure political influence of the worst kind. A minister who deliberately withholds relevant and possibly exculpatory documents until after the conviction. Words really cannot express...

"If we had received those documents earlier and also all the other documents requested on that basis, and now also obtained with the permission of your court, then perhaps it might not have come to a conviction at all...then the court might not have decided on a conviction in the first instance.

"Minister Van der Steur has deliberately withheld those documents, as is apparent from these documents. Moreover, it appears that another Justice Minister, Minister Opstelten, lied when he said during his interrogation by the commissioner, that outside the Council of Ministers — you can find it literally in the reports — he never spoke about this matter with other ministers.

"The documents that we received yesterday show that he did indeed talk to other ministers about this outside the Council of Ministers, namely with Interior Minister Ronald Plasterk.

"Mr. Presiding Judge, the Minister of Justice interfered in detail with my conviction. The documents even state that the Ministry of Justice instructed the public prosecutor — you will find the word 'instruct' in the documents — when and at what time they had to call me on October 9, 2014, to say that I was a suspect. For a phone call to me, saying that I was a suspect, the Public Prosecutor's Office was instructed by the Ministry of Justice when and at what time and on what day that had to happen.

"My case has been dealt with in detail. And this whole trial, just like the Wilders 1 trial, is permeated with political influence. From phone calls, up to the Council of Ministers, and to ministers who withheld or delayed documents, an opposition leader from the national parliament has been prosecuted for ten years that way.

"Politics have always been involved, from civil servants to ministers and the Council of Ministers. Every day that this trial continues and you do not punish the conspiring prosecution, and the Ministry of Justice for their lies and haggling with the principles of an independent, fair and balanced trial, by declaring them inadmissible, every day this trial continues is a black day in the history of Dutch justice.

"This trial will have to stop today. I have said it many times. To be honest, I find it incomprehensible that this has not been decided long ago by declaring the prosecution inadmissible. If in the unfortunate event, even after today, you want to continue with this trial again, then indeed, and you have just said that, Mr. Presiding Judge, we need ample time to read all those documents and possibly based on those documents, also call new witnesses, like Minister Van der Steur. Like the prime minister. Like all the people involved.

"It is clear from these documents that they are more involved than we already knew. And see the minutes, the records, of the Council of Ministers as well. It appears to have been discussed. It has been said by the General Affairs official against the Justice official: '[Prime Minister Mark] Rutte wants to say something about the chances of this trial, Ivo [Opstelten].' And Ivo went to the Council of Ministers on March 21. This has always been denied. Denied during the interrogations. Now it appears to have just happened. I want to see those documents from the Council of Ministers. I want to talk to people about it. It is not just about someone who steals a roll of licorice. It is about the opposition leader in the Dutch parliament whose persecution has been influenced up to the Council of Ministers.

"I want to hear the truth. I want to hear more than the truth about the political influence in this trial so that this trial is taken off the table as quickly as possible."

"On February 3, just before another hearing in the endless criminal case against Wilders, a bulk of internal documents were dropped by Justice Minister Ferdinand Grapperhaus which relate to the official and political involvement in this trial. These documents were intended for the House of Representatives and are now public.

"If the Chamber takes its task seriously, it must investigate the political nature of this lawsuit. That is emphatically not an investigation into the trial itself — after all, we have a separation of powers here — but an investigation into the political role behind the continuation of this trial....

"In the Wilders case, we certainly do not have to rely on the judge to agree with Wilders and to reach the conclusion that there has been a political trial, which is therefore not legally valid.... After the internal documents released, the issue has become even more flammable.

"The Wilders case appears to have been pre-cooked in the cabinet itself.... [Prime Minister] Rutte himself was involved.... The lying and spinning must stop somewhere.

"The anger of Wilders in court was only too understandable, and all too justified. It is the anger of more and more Dutch people. Even in the mainstream media it is now recognized that this political pre-cooking goes beyond all limits.

"This is the umpteenth example in which democracy is excluded by the judiciary, because the judiciary and the OM have become an extension of politics.

"This point is increasingly emphasized by, among others, Forum for Democracy leader Thierry Baudet, whose hypocritical opponents accuse him of rejecting the rule of law.

"This rule of law, in which judges and prosecutors receive instructions by the politicians on how to act, is rotten from within."

Wilders' trial will continue on March 23. Four additional hearings are scheduled for April. It remains unclear when his trial will end.

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45 Reader Comments

Elizabeth T. • Feb 27, 2020 at 23:37

What a courageous man Geert Wilder is, and also the journalists and others who are standing with him in this travesty of a trial "Justice cries in the streets" how true!

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Joe S. • Feb 17, 2020 at 06:38

The Wilders trial has become a joke!! Geert is a prophet who must be respected and listened to because he is telling the truth about the dangers of Islam. Never mind political correctness and false Islamophobia. The trial should stop immediately, for enough time has been wasted. Listen to Geert before it's too late, for heaven's sake!!!!

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Nemo • Feb 11, 2020 at 08:11

The more Muslims that arrive, the more frightened of them the Dutch become!The Dutch are going the way of the French!

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Glenda Saville • Feb 9, 2020 at 21:06

Is the migrant situation driven by humanitarian concerns, or by the need for countries to drive growth by bringing in cheap labour and more people to support greater consumption? It seems to me that the problems are caused by enclaves of unemployed, mainly young men leaving countries where there are no prospects, who become a burden on the welfare system, are dissatisfied with their circumstances, often turn to crime, etc. but any backlash by the general populace (if they decide to speak out) is considered to be "hate" speech.

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Rick Kelley • Feb 9, 2020 at 12:59

Who would have guessed the Democratic Party has a Netherlands Branch.
Isn't that one of the countries the US's very own "liberals" hold up as a paragon of Left wing political virtue? Sure looks like the Dutch equivalent of our First Amendment could use some review - - -

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o.j. frowein • Feb 10, 2020 at 04:58

Babbler, you're right, except for the fact that the Dutch media is severely censored by the government. And they still dare to call NL a democracy = LIE =Fake News!

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Claudia Wulff o.j. frowein • Feb 10, 2020 at 13:13

Babbler, many of the refugees are already here in the U.S. Can you name a single country in this world where the government doesn't severely censor media?Equality and freedom for all! Doesn't this sound good. Come and have a look.

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o.j. frowein • Feb 9, 2020 at 08:42

This government excels in stupidity of its members PLUS their ability to WASTE taxpayers money on useless matters. Rutte wants to be RIGHT no matter what the ultimate result will be = a typical Dutch characteristic. At the same time it's a distraction maneuver to hide the real problems of the country's finances, migrants & economy!!

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John in Cheshire • Feb 9, 2020 at 06:36

It seems the lefties and globalists everywhere are using what I think is called Lawfare to punish and destroy their enemies.

What goes around comes around and I think we'll now see President Trump show the way to the fight back against the wicked people.

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Susan Colvin • Feb 9, 2020 at 06:12

The PM must be sacked. Wilders is greatly respected in Australia.

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Chanah • Feb 9, 2020 at 00:02

The hypocrisy of prosecuting Wilders or any other advocates for changing EU immigration policy is astounding. At the same so-called liberal governments tolerate heinous speech by Islamic radicals. A number of years ago severe Islamic threats forced a Dutch synagogue to cancel religious services. It's clear that Wilders is not the bully here. He is only telling the truth.

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Russ Davis • Feb 8, 2020 at 23:08

Since depraved Holland exploits women with prostitution, it's no surprise they don't limit the exploitation to women or to the sexual variety, not that it's unique.

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Bob Russ Davis • Feb 12, 2020 at 09:14

You seem to forget the same deplorability going on globally. One cannot say this country or that country is worse or better anymore. It comes down to street level everywhere.

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Joan Ribi • Feb 8, 2020 at 20:37

Suppression of Freedom of Speech is the dictator's sword that kills Democracy.
Truth hurts because it is the truth.

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June Skelton • Feb 8, 2020 at 17:41

The oppression of Geert Wilders reflects a Europe-wide phenomenon. From what I gather, he stands virtually alone as a politician committed to free speech, and the interests of the ordinary folk in the Netherlands.

I hate to say it, but within a few short years those corrupt individuals now ranged against him will be confronted with the folly of their machinations. By then it will be too late — what was once a progressive society that was the envy of others in the Western World will be reduced to yet another backward community, one that has sold its soul to a pre-medieval ethos.

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Michael Schmidt • Feb 8, 2020 at 16:45

This is what, to all appearances, Democrat Party rule would look like here. It's all about the results. Beware.

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NickSJ Michael Schmidt • Feb 9, 2020 at 04:30

It's already happened. First, the Trump/Russia hoax in which Obama administration officials cooked up false charges and a corrupt investigation, and then the recent Ukraine hoax, in which Obama hold-overs conspired with Democrats in the House to provide a pretext for a sham impeachment. Democrats here are engaged in at least as many corrupt machinations as their Dutch counterparts.

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Adam Keller • Feb 8, 2020 at 16:28

On March 18, 2016, Wilders went on trial again for allegedly inciting hatred against Moroccan immigrants. Prosecutors said that in March 2014, Wilders, while campaigning in The Hague, asked a crowd of supporters if they wanted more or fewer Moroccans in the Netherlands. The crowd said fewer. Wilders responded: "We'll take care of that."

Change just one word in that description. Suppose that a Dutch politician would have asked supporters if they wanted more or fewer JEWS in the Netherlands, and the crowd would have shouted that wanted fewer JEWS, and the speaker would have responded: "We'll take care of that." Would anyone have had the slightest doubt that this was hate speech?

Prosecution spokeswoman Ilse de Heer said that Wilders "targeted a specific race, which is considered a crime." Wilders countered that his comments referred to Moroccan criminals, not to Moroccans in general, and that, in any event, Moroccans are not a race.

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Glenda Saville Adam Keller • Feb 9, 2020 at 21:28

In my humble opinion, you have missed the point. The Jews were hard-working, self-sufficient, valuable contributing members of society wherever they went. (I am not Jewish, but I worked for and with some here in Australia and totally appreciated them.) Any group of people who create a disruption in a society, who increase crime because they are incapable of finding legitimate means of surviving, let alone contributing to the benefit of all, should be held to account without those holding them to account being accused of hatred.

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Berti Adam Keller • Feb 10, 2020 at 10:32

So you want us to shut up for the sake of diversity, which is tearing up the west.

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Adam Keller Berti • Feb 11, 2020 at 00:36

I want anyone to shut up who calls for reducing the number of Jews, or the number of Moroccans, or the number of any other ethnic group. History has shown that such talk can lead to mass murder.

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Ed in Texas Adam Keller • Feb 12, 2020 at 09:30

As Mr. Wilders point out to the judges, exactly what unique race do you believe the Moroccan race is?

Yours is a straw man argument. You depend on Jewish history, going back at least to the Romans, of genocide or near genocide to power your comparison of Moroccans to Jews. It doesn't hold water.

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Ed in Texas Adam Keller • Feb 12, 2020 at 09:39

Thank you for a truly honest answer. You are in good company in wanting to silence those with whom you disagree. Most Socialist-Democrats,Socialists, Communists, Maoists, Fidelistas, Chavistas and assorted fellow travelers agree.

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Adam Keller Ed in Texas • Feb 12, 2020 at 13:48

What unique "race " are the Jews? Are the black-skinned Jews from Ethiopia the same "race" as the white-skinned Jews from Europe? To what "race" did my Jewish grandmother in Poland belong, who had very prominent cheekbones which made her look distinctly Mongolian? Jews are NOT a "race". Jews were a "race" only in the sick fantasies of Adolf Hitler. Until about 200 years ago, Jews were a religious community, living according to a very strict unique religious code. Some Jews are still like that, but most Jews in the world now are secularised descendants of religious ancestors. Moroccans are not a "race" either. They are people of a country with a long history and a rich culture, and there are many significant differences among them. Moroccan immigrants to the Netherlands face much the same problems and the same prejudices as immigrants faced in all times and places, the same troubles that Jewish immigrants faced in many countries and times, the same troubles that Irish immigrants and Italian immigrants and Chinese immigrants faced in the US. Genetically, the differences between human beings are very minor - that is why all humans can easily interbreed with each other. In reality there is only one race - the Human Race.

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Terra Nova • Feb 8, 2020 at 16:02

The Netherlands are always said to be the top, the best, and the country where people are the happiest in the world.Don't believe it. They sold out their own citizens, took away freedom of speech, did not dare to speak up did not hold their laws, because of people who came here and wanted total over our countries, and are profiting of everything, including healthcare. But we had to take it all in and can not criticise. Look at your Government - who they are when you criticise them, then you know who your Government is ROTTEN FROM WITHIN.
When you criticise them, you are against them, and you become the enemy.
I wish Mr. Geert Wilders all the best. He is probably the only one who understands what is a democracy.Remember, the Netherlands had another politician named Pim Fortuyn; he dared to speak up, and got murdered. It is ten past twelve. Governments who are lying have to go! We are paying their big salaries.They will not stop at anything!!!

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dkjack Terra Nova • Feb 11, 2020 at 08:40

"The Netherlands are always said to be the top, the best, and the country where people are the happiest in the world."

No, that refers to the Danes, not the Dutch.

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Morris Givner • Feb 8, 2020 at 13:30

The trial of Geert Wilders illustrates once again that Western European nations and their leaders are fearful to speak and write the truth of Islamic ideology and how Muslim conquerors treated the vanquished for the past1400 years. The Dutch Government betrays their own citizens by not insisting that Muslim immigrants must live according to democratic values, namely, the right of free speech, the right to assemble, the right to criticize, the right to education, the right to a job, the right to housing, the right to adequate food and the right to be free of torture, the right not to be jailed for speaking one's opinion or for citing some historical fact, the right to speak about the rights of women, children and minorities, the right to speak out against female genital mutilation, the abuse of women and children and the right to speak against human slavery and the abuse of animals. It is also a basic human right to advocate monogamy and not polygamy.

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Elizabeth • Feb 8, 2020 at 13:13

The DEEP STATE is obviously not only confined to America, but has it's counterparts in other Western nations as well. They are bent on destroying all the tenets of democracy and moral values that have made our countries function relatively well and peaceful in days gone by.

Since communism and neo-Marxism have become fashionable again, peaceful existence has been replaced with chaos.Hand in hand with that comes kowtowing to Islam, but as Churchill quoted, they are "Appeasing the crocodile hoping it will eat them last".

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E.J.M. Rentinck • Feb 8, 2020 at 12:03

Thank you very very much for spreading this information about our corrupt and lying politicians and the bad influence they have on our (activist) judges, throughout Europe.They make that most people don't believe in the rule of law anymore.

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Elizabeth Raynor Short • Feb 8, 2020 at 11:46

Unfortunately, it is glaringly obvious that those "in control" in the west will stop at nothing, observe no firewall (rule of law, separation of powers, e.g.) - not even double jeopardy - in order to hound those with whom they disagree and who they believe pose a threat to their world view and, more importantly, their power and control. Many of us in US stand with Mr. Wilders.

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Lewis Bishop, Jr. • Feb 8, 2020 at 11:31

Wilders is a voice of reason in a den of political leaders who have about as much respect for social order and patriotic political integrity as did the kids in "Lord of the Flies," who needed rescue by a higher power. Who will show up to save Europe's culture of beauty and cleanliness from their foolish march toward chaos?

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Russ Davis Lewis Bishop, Jr. • Feb 8, 2020 at 23:14

Only the God many if not most stupidly, suicidally reject can save us. Our vastly more educated and wiser forefathers understood this, unlike their foolish successors vainly pretending to be wise.

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Selma Soss • Feb 8, 2020 at 10:00

I have no trouble standing up for Geert Wilders. He was one of thefirst to stand up to the extreme influx of Muslims coming through Europe, even after 9-11. Geert Wilders saw what was happening and never gave up fighting for the old Conservative values of his country Holland, and Europe; his outstanding courage affecting America as well.

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June Skelton • Feb 8, 2020 at 08:34

The oppression of Geert Wilders reflects a Europe-wide phenomenon. From what I gather, he stands virtually alone as a politician committed to free speech, and the interests of the ordinary folk in the Netherlands.

I hate to say it, but within a few short years those corrupt individuals now ranged against him will be confronted with the folly of their machinations. By then it will be too late—what was once a progressive society that was the envy of others in the Western World will be reduced to yet another backward community, one that has sold its soul to a pre-medieval ethos.

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Erica Ling • Feb 8, 2020 at 08:15

When the judiciary loses its independence, becomes another tool to be used to silence legitimate opposition to a government, then that government is no longer by the people, for the people, which defines democracy. The Netherlands is obviously learning from the type of governance with which the majority of immigrants are familiar. Is that what was meant by "we have much to learn from other cultures" ?

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Lewis Bishop, Jr. Erica Ling • Feb 8, 2020 at 13:28

I agree that we should be none too eager to learn from other cultures. Why would the most beautiful, most elaborate, most successful, and most peaceful culture want to learn anything from another culture?

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sr.1888@live.nl • Feb 8, 2020 at 07:36

This is not the first time in recent Dutch history. A pattern does exist. Look in to how Hans Janmaat was treated (not only in legal an political sense but also violently attacked and bombed). Look at Pim Fortuyn and how the ruling and old politicians Wim Kok, Ad Melkert, Marcel van Dam, Paul Rosenmöller, Job Cohen, Wouter Bos, Thom de Graaf and Alexander Pechtold treated him. Leading to his murder in 2002. Look at how Richard de Mos is being treated. Look how Thierry Baudet is being treated. There is a real pattern of ruling power exterminating all strong opposition. There also is a pattern of them ruling the media. All things the opposition does is being enlarged heavily whilst wrongdoing and deceit by the ruling politicians never get much attention. (Look at Rutte, Opstelten, Pechtold, Eurlings, Zijlstra, Jorritsma et cetera). Something is very, very wrong here!

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Lewis Bishop, Jr. sr.1888@live.nl • Feb 8, 2020 at 17:08

Dear sr.1888 Thanks for your opinions and for your work in English. I never learned a foreign language. I should have. Here is what is very, very wrong. The successful and wealthy Western elite ones, the intelligentsia, drifted from worshiping the Creator G od; therefore, their innate need for meaning led them to search elsewhere. They were easy prey for the University history revisionist propaganda which says Third World Countries were damaged by Western Indo European Colonialism, so the Western educated leaders now worship at the "Altar of Minority Group/Third World Peoples Sensitivity Discomfort Elimination." These EU Leaders are doing every thing they can to enforce penance upon me, who they see as guilty (I disagree). They think grand appeasement, (castigation of Christianity, and celebration of things Islamic) will usher in world peace, but it can't happen.

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Claudia Wulff sr.1888@live.nl • Feb 9, 2020 at 08:38

There is nothing new in the scenario of Wilder vs. Government. Emperors, Kings, Popes, Dictators and political leaders have all been known to conduct themselves in the same manner throughout history.

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Claudia Wulff sr.1888@live.nl • Feb 9, 2020 at 18:29

Hello sr.1888@live.nl,Please read my comment two down from yours. Dutch history does not stand alone in deceit by ruling politicians. The identical pattern has existed globally as long as mankind inhabited this planet.

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Alan • Feb 8, 2020 at 07:35

PC politicians and bureaucrats in Europe and the USA behave exactly the same way outside of the law. Disgusting. Geert is a patriot and a hero.

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Hans Lembøl • Feb 8, 2020 at 07:07

Well, why should we be better off in Europe than the rest of the world? Of, course, our politicians are lying and cheating like everywhere else. And it's getting worse by the year. They are afraid of the people's reactions to the Islamic immigration they have allowed and even supported. They are trying to protect themselves by dismantling democracy and rule of law.

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Scott Evans • Feb 8, 2020 at 06:14

Well, well,...I never liked Rutte,...he's a weenie arm. I watched how he tried to snow Trump but we saw through his phony BS. Geert Wilders is a fine man. So now, aside from fighting Islam in his home country he now has to fight off the liberals without a clue or the backbone to stand up for one's own people. This charade will backfire... these foolish attempts to attack the one, honest man amongst them all always fail as we have witnessed with Trump. We won't let them take Mr. Wilders down if those of us in America have a say (and we will find a way mark my word)... just as they have attacked Marine Le Pen. This was bound to happen because the accusers are weak and they are cowards. This is disgusting and not how you treat patriots. The libs world-wide are scared indeed. They picked this fight,...

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John Warren • Feb 8, 2020 at 06:03

One shudders to think of the destination all this political intrusion will lead to.

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maria • Feb 8, 2020 at 05:39

Mr Wilders is the best politicians in The Netherlands. He is the bravest man in Europe, a real freedom loving man and he should be the PM in The Netherlands.His rotten enemies should be indicted.

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